WEBINAR / Watch Material Landscapes

Thomas Robinson, Lever Architecture / Material Landscapes

Thomas will discuss lessons learned from 10+ years of mass timber design and research, detailing an approach that sees design as a wider process from Forest to Frame and considers material origins and production as drivers of design. Thomas will highlight recent projects such as the Adidas North American Headquarters Expansion, the Oregon Conservation Center, and the Meyer Memorial Trust Headquarters—detailing how innovative sourcing can encourage responsible forest management and unlock economic opportunity for rural communities and businesses owned by people of color.

Learning outcomes:

• You will gain insight into the design process of several of Lever Architecture projects
• An understanding of Mass Timber and CLT
• An understanding of the meaning behind forest to frame

Speaker Bio: Thomas Robinson, Lever Architecture

Thomas is the Founder of LEVER Architecture, a US-based design practice with offices in Portland, Oregon and Los Angeles. His firm is widely recognised for material innovation and for pioneering work with Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT). Thomas’ projects encompass first-of-their-kind timber buildings for clients such as The Nature Conservancy and Adidas and include more than $1M in research to develop and test wood building assemblies. He has lectured globally on mass timber innovation and taught advanced wood design studios at the University of Arkansas and the University of Oregon. LEVER was recently recognized by Fast Company as one of the world’s most innovative companies; and in 2017, was named to Architectural Record’s Design Vanguard and to the Architectural League of New York’s Emerging Voices.

Ged Finch, XFrame / Construction Waste and Circularity

What is a circular economy, and how can we reuse or minimise construction waste? Daniel Gudsell, Abodo's Managing Director, and then PhD student Ged Finch discuss the role of circular economy in construction.

Ged explains the concept of functional value and abundance, along with the use of buildings as "material banks" for the future. Ged outlines a future where construction materials manufacturers collaborate to create standardised systems, and the embodied energy of the materials used is transparent.

Learning outcomes:

• Gain an understanding of the circular economy and how to reuse or minimise construction waste.
• Gain an understanding of how someone can extend the building materials' life span can be extended.
• You will learn what "material banking" is for the future.

Speaker Bio: Ged Finch, XFrame

Ged Finch is a co-founder and the chief technology officer of XFrame – a modular circular economy construction technology business in New Zealand and Australia. XFrame designs and manufactures lightweight framing technology that is easily deconstructed, reconfigured, and reused. These framing systems work with prefabricated wall linings and cladding solutions to achieve complete building circularity.